Symbiote 0299: Beach (1/2)

"Goodbye, Mrs. Stacy. It was great having you here with us," Alex shook the woman's hand as she nodded in response.

It was then Gwen's turn as the mother-daughter duo spent more than just a few minutes saying their farewells. By the end, both of them were left teary-eyed as Gwen's mother got on the private jet. Her brothers had already gone up after their farewells.

As the door to the plane closed, Alex led Gwen back to the car as he started driving.

Gwen was feeling particularly needy as she leaned toward Alex and hugged his free arm.

"Did you want her to stay longer?" Alex asked.

"Yes …" She nodded. "Not just her … It was lively with everyone around, don't you think?"

"I know I was less lively because everyone was around," Alex joked, only to be met with a slap on his chest.

"Hey … would you have an issue if I had my mother move in with us? Phillip is already going to college, while Howard and Simon will graduate high school in two to three years. She'll be all alone then."

"Sure," Alex shrugged. "Hell, if you want me to, I can make sure that your brothers can also move in with us. Phillip is already going to Oxford; I can get the other two in here as well. You don't need to be separated at all if you don't want to."

"You don't think I'm being needy?"

"Not at all," Alex shook his head. "You just care about your family. That's natural."

"It was just an idle thought," Gwen said. "Even if I want her to move in with us, that can only happen after two years."

"You could encourage your mother to look for another partner in the meantime."

"Nah …" She shook her head. "I talked to her about it. She doesn't want to move on at all. She's just happy to see her kids grow up."

"Well, four kids is a lot. They must've really loved each other."

"I feel like I should be offended …"

"Don't be," Alex said. "If you really want to live close to your mother, we can move to the States. I'll set up a permanent portal from our home to the underground lab here."

"We'll cross that bridge when we get to it," Gwen said. "For now, how about we just go home and rest?"

"I have another idea. Wanna go to the beach?"

"It's almost October," Gwen pointed out.

"We can go even if it's December," Alex said. "As long as you're in the mood."

"Sure, I guess, but you need to take me swimsuit shopping."

"Anything for my girl."

"Corny." Gwen snuggled closer to Alex and rested her head on his shoulder.

…

"I am not buying a leopard print bikini," Gwen crossed her arms and looked pointedly at Alex. He had just offered her a bikini with a rough, animalistic design. He had offered it to her just for a laugh.

"Fine, I'll settle for this skimpy one," Alex looked like he was making a great sacrifice as he handed Gwen the insufficient piece of fabric that was even smaller than her palm when put together.

"I'll choose something for myself," She snorted and ignored him before walking further.

"Son, that's not how you convince your lady to wear a sexy bikini," The old man manning the counter spoke with a thick Caribbean accent. "Your methods of going with a funny bad design before going with a skimpy one aren't bad, but you're too out there. Your intentions should both be clear, but not too clear to your lady …"

Alex gladly engaged the old clerk in a conversation as Gwen went through the store, browsing through all sorts of different designs.

She came back to him almost half an hour later and wordlessly grabbed his arm.

"I'll be off … I didn't get his name," Alex mumbled as Gwen led him into the changing room.

"So I like these three," She said, pointing to three sets that were hanging on the hooks. "Help me choose."

Alex looked at the designs for barely a second before evaluating them, "You have to model them for me before I can make an accurate judgment. I need to see you in them."

"Fine, I'm choosing this one," Gwen's hands went to the one that revealed the least skin and was closer to a school swimsuit than a sexy bikini.

"Fine, fine, this one," Alex grabbed her arm and shifted it to another one. This one had an interesting design. It was something of a one-piece bikini, but most of it was made of some kind of stretchable sheer material that would perfectly display her figure and skin.

"Good boy," Gwen smiled brightly and patted Alex on the head.

"I feel like you're trying to turn me into a whipped man the more we hang out these days."

"Please," Gwen said. "I'm just trying to get you to tone down your overbearing nature. I agreed with your choice without hesitation, didn't I?"

Alex shrugged, "Worst case scenario, I have to spend a couple of months with you in our new home dungeon."

"Don't you dare try to use any of your shitty hypnotic tactics on me," Gwen pointed at him.

"Those shitty hypnotic tactics have healed your mind and soul."

"And why did I need that, I wonder …" Gwen's words left Alex speechless.

"Are you always going to use this card when we disagree?"

"If I feel the need to, yes," Gwen's haughty tone made Alex sigh in defeat.

As they walked out of the store, the sound of waves crashing against rocks instantly hit their ears. "We're a fifteen-minute drive away from our destination. Do you want to change here or in the car?"

"I'll change once we get to the beach. They should have changing rooms. If not, then I'll just do it in the car."

"Fine, I'll pretend that I haven't already imagined you in all sorts of positions while wearing that swimsuit."

Gwen coughed instantly and looked at Alex with an annoyed scowl, though the blush on her face gave her embarrassment away.

Without saying anything more, they sat in the car and made their way to the beach.

"There aren't any changing rooms here … Can we go to another beach?"

"Just change in the car," Alex said. "I've already paid for the entry. Plus, this place is empty, we have virtually the entire beach to ourselves. What if the others are crowded? You won't let me use my powers to drive people away either."

"Yeah, you're right… Hold a spot for us. I'll be back as soon as possible." Gwen ran back to their car.

"She's going to be a while," Alex sighed and looked at an unoccupied set of beach chairs.

A calm breath escaped Alex as he got rid of his beach shirt and lay on the beach chair under the shade of an umbrella.

'She's purposefully being annoying to push my buttons and see if I snap at her … She may have accepted the events of the past, but that came at the cost of not trusting me fully. Despite everything, it is going to take years, maybe even decades, for her to truly trust me … Hopefully, whoever said that thing about time healing all wounds wasn't a moron. I don't want Gwen to spend her life with hate festering inside her.'

As Alex was still musing, his enhanced senses picked up the sound of someone stepping on the sand, and he instantly knew who it was. He turned his head and lost his breath. His girlfriend was slowly walking toward him, adorned in a blue bikini that matched her eyes. It didn't particularly expose too much skin but exposed her figure perfectly as the sheer fabric that covered her stomach gave her a unique feeling. She approached him with a confident expression that was an equal mix of haughty and arrogant. She knew that Alex was mesmerized by her appearance.

"I see you're all in the mood to enjoy a long-term vacation," She looked at his lazy appearance and commented.

"Come into the shade. You'll get sunburnt," Alex said.

"You aren't going to protect me? After all the time you keep me cooped up indoors without the sun, my skin is as pale as a frickin' baby's," her tone was full of blame.

"I have an offer. I'll put sunscreen on you, and you can go and order me a sweet fruity drink, one of those they make with vodka."

"No whiskey on ice?"

"At the beach? Please. Oh, and don't forget the swirly straw."

"Sunscreen first," Gwen made him scoot to the side and sat on his bench despite the adjacent one being free.

"Do I have to use my hands?" Alex asked.

"If you dare to take a shortcut, I'll … I don't know. I'll bring you a cheap, warm rum or something." Even Gwen was feeling tired of acting bratty all the time.

"Make yourself comfortable," Alex said, sitting up and letting Gwen take the bench as he produced a bottle of sunscreen lotion from his ‹Inventory›.

***

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